Brent Eastwood, who served from 2011 to 2012 as the New Mexico Economic Development Department’s division director of international trade, told NM Political Report that the FBI interviewed him about issues in state government.

Eastwood said his questioning wasn’t related to Martinez’s campaign spending or her top political advisor Jay McCleskey, which the Santa Fe New Mexican reported early Saturday morning. Eastwood said he is not privy to any investigation into McCleskey or campaign spending.

“I can confirm to you that I’ve been questioned by the FBI on governance issues with the administration,” said Eastwood, who now heads GovBrain, a Washington D.C.-based firm that analyzes political events and how they affect the stock market.

Eastwood estimated that he’s communicated with the FBI between 10 and 20 times in person, phone conference and email over the past two years. He said his most recent communication came in August.

Eastwood would not divulge specifics about what state departments or issues the FBI questioned him about, but did say that he turned over evidence to federal agents.

Eastwood is co-plaintiff to a whistleblower lawsuit against his former workplace, the state Economic Development Department, and Cabinet Secretary Jon Barela and Deputy Cabinet Secretary Barbara Brazil.

The lawsuit, filed last year in Santa Fe District Court, accuses Barela of corruption, retaliation and mismanagement. Among the lawsuit’s allegations are that Barela paid the web company Real Time Solutions $30,000 without a state contract, which would violate the state procurement code. The company’s web developer is the wife of Albuquerque attorney and lobbyist Pat Rogers, a Republican National Committeeman and a close advisor to Martinez’ administration.

Another allegation in the lawsuit accuses Barela and department General Counsel Wade Jackson of extramarital activity that could expose the state to sexual harassment charges.

Barela and other defendants have denied the allegations. The case is currently before court.

It’s unclear whether Eastwood’s contact with the FBI is related to the allegations in his lawsuit. Last year, the progressive magazine Mother Jones cited an anonymous source who said both Eastwood and co-plaintiff Kurt Saenz, the state Economic Development Department’s former chief finance officer, spoke to federal authorities about their allegations.

“I can’t comment further,” Eastwood told NM Political Report.

Eastwood’s comments reveal a likelihood that the FBI’s inquiries into Martinez’ operations are broader than her campaign actions.

Before Eastwood was hired in the Martinez administration, he previously worked as a defense analyst in science and technology at the RAND Corporation. He also worked on constituent services for Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry and served on the event staff at the Republican National Convention in 2008. Eastwood was a member of Martinez’s Department of Veterans’ Services Review Team during her transition after she was elected in 2010. Eastwood’s wife was a scheduler on Martinez’s 2010 gubernatorial campaign.

The end of 2015 brought explosive news that the FBI were conducting investigations on New Mexico state government and Gov. Susana Martinez’ top political operative, Jay McCleskey. The first report, by the Santa Fe New Mexican, mentioned that federal authorities were looking into campaign spending by Martinez during her first gubernatorial campaign in 2010 and also spending from her first inaugural committee in 2011.

The governor’s top communications official left the administration. The Associated Press first reported that Chris Sanchez left his position as communications director in Gov. Susana Martinez’s office for an out-of-state job.

SANTA FE -- A death threat against immigration attorney Allegra Love launched an FBI investigation and forced the Santa Fe advocate to abandon her home until the danger passed, sources have told Searchlight New Mexico. The threat came in an April 29 voicemail from a New Mexico phone number.

State Rep. Bobby Gonzales shook his head from side to side after listening to all the suggestions about how to meet a judge's order to provide more resources to New Mexico children who, in the court's view, are not receiving a good public education.

Joey Peters has been a journalist for nearly a decade. Most recently, his reporting in New Mexico on closed government policies earned several accolades. Peters has also worked as a reporter in Washington DC and the Twin Cities. Contact him by phone at (505) 226-3197.